Objective: To provide instruction on identifying and using the biblical Gifts of the Spirit.
I Cor 12:27-28
12:27 - Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.
12:28 - And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues
I Cor 12:4-11
12:4 - There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit.
12:5 - There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord.
12:6 - There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men.
12:7 - Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.
12:8 - To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit,
12:9 - to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit,
12:10 - to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues.
12:11 - All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.
I. What are the Gifts of the Spirit?
a. There are special ways that God empowers us to accomplish the purposes for which he has made us.
b. The are the team player "skills" within the Body of Christ
c. They define the role that you play at any specific time throughout your Christian life.
d. They are not useless, ethereal, or "witchy" skills. They are not meant to show who is more spiritual or who is more blessed.
e. Recognizing and using them is basic to being a Christian.
f. Prior involvement in the occult does not help to have or acquire these gifts. Everything that is not of the Holy Spirit is sin - so it is counterfeit and need to be recognized as such.
II. Breaking down the Biblical gifts
a. Apostle
i. Greek 'apostolos' meaning 'one sent forth with orders; he that is sent; an ambassador of the Gospel'
ii. The apostolic gift is one of a visionary and mentor to the Body of Christ. The gift involves establishing close relationship with leaders who God has appointed and helping them to establish a work.
iii. Apostles lead using knowledge of the Word of God, wisdom for ministry, a mastery of relationships, and natural charisma.
iv. Apostles are appointed from within the Body of Christ, so no one can just call themselves an apostle. In order to be a mentor, you must first be mentored yourself. If you do not have that desire, then you are not an apostle.
b. Prophecy
i. Greek 'prophetes' meaning 'an interpreter of secret things;one moved by God to declare what He has inspired.'
ii. Old Testament prophets existed to advise the people of
iii. New Testament prophets operate through the Holy Spirit to declare God's heart and intentions to the Body of Christ. He or she operates through the local leadership as well.
iv. Prophecy and divination are two separate things. One sees and feels the heart of God while the other listens to demons and familiar spirits.
v. The mark of a true prophet:
1. He speaks truth - a prophet of God does not lie, deceive, or manipulate people.
2. He is wise - seeing through the eyes and feeling through the heart of God.
3. He is accurate - they do not miss the mark when they tell you about what God is intending.
vi. The gift of prophecy is marked by the accurate understanding of things before they manifest. The act of prophesying is speaking from that understanding.
vii. A true New Testament prophet operates in submission under a leader. They usually have a gift to teach, and must have a clear understanding of the written Word.
c. Teaching
i. Greek 'didaskolos' meaning 'one who teaches' (pretty easy, huh?).
ii. In order to teach, one must study. There is nothing worse than a teacher that does not truly know his or her topic.
iii. Must be rounded and balanced in the Word of God, knowing everything that the Word has to say about a subject before teaching it.
iv. Teaching is a charismatic gift, meaning that those with the gift of teaching have the ability to truly impart knowledge from God in a way that people take something away with them.
v. Teaching also requires human practice. The more you do it, the better you get at it.
vi. If you do not have the desire to learn, then you do not have the gift of teaching.
d. Miracles
i. Greek 'dunamis' meaning 'strength, power, or abilities;power to perform miracles'
ii. This gift is the ability to build the Church through the use of influence and miracles.
iii. People with the gift of "dunamis" have find favor to make things happen that could not normally happen.
iv. A test of this gift is pretty easy - can you work miracles?
e. Healing
i. Greek 'Iama' meaning 'healing, remedy, medicine'
ii. The healing gift is the ability to administer bodily healing to those that need it.
iii. The apostles demonstrated this gift throughout the New Testament, healing people from sicknesses and diseases.
iv. The gift of healing proves itself and does not need the help of theatrical presentations.
v. If your word or prayer heals people, you have this gift.
f. Helps
i. Greek 'Antilepsis' meaning 'to aide or to help'
ii. This gift is the ability to serve in every capacity.
iii. There are those that are specially gifted with a heart, attitude, and ability to help in almost any situation.
iv. Tom Welch, my dear friend, was such a person.
v. This spiritual gift comes with extraordinary humility, the ability to get past the high mindedness of others,
vi. This gift is absolutely necessary for the Body of Christ to succeed.
vii. It requires love, compassion, and heart of God.
viii. If you naturally want to help others, you have this gift.
g. Administration
i. Greek 'kubernesis' meaning 'to steer; leadership; government'
ii. This shows that the church should have leadership, people who will help guide and direct it towards its purpose.
iii. Administrators take on the responsibility of the details of the vision that God has for His Church, and know how to delegate responsibility.
iv. Administrators run the "organizational" aspect of the church.
v. People are leaders by example, Paul gives us good guidelines for these leaders in I Tim 3
h. Tongues
i. Greek 'glossa' meaning 'languages'
ii. There are two gifts of tongues in the word
1. Tongues of Angels (I Cor 13:1)
2. Other human languages (Acts 2)
iii. According to 1 Cor 14:22, the gift of tongues is given as a sign for those that do not believe, to gain their attention. The connotation is that it is referring to the gift of speaking in a language that the unbeliever can understand.
iv. Tongues should be used privately, between you and God, or in the church only with interpretation.
v. Tongues are a gift that you can privately practice in your time with God and is always subject to the person using them.
i. Interpretation of Tongues
i. Greek 'hermeneia glossa' meaning 'interpretation of unknown languages'
ii. This gift is the other side of the gift of tongues.
iii. It is a supernatural ability to translate what anther person speaks in tongues.
iv. It is necessary when a person brings prophetic tongues during a service.
v. Unless this gift is present, the gift of tongues should not be used in the middle of church. The word even tells us that unbelievers will think we are crazy!
vi. Sometimes this gift is given to the same person with the gift of tongues - as a matter of fact, we should pray for that!
j. Word of Wisdom
i. Greek 'logos sophia' meaning 'a word or saying of divine intelligence or prudence'
ii. This gift provides the Church with insight into the mind of God.
iii. It allows the recipient to understand thing and apply things that others find difficult to understand.
iv. It allows one to discover ideas and principles that others can use.
v. It allows us to see things the way the really are.
vi. A person with this gift displays wisdom in their own lives. If they are irresponsible or foolish, they do not have this gift.
vii. Applying the Word of Wisdom changes your life and propels you toward the will of God.
k. Word of Knowledge
i. Greek 'logos gnosis' meaning 'word or saying of factual knowledge'
ii. This is a prophetic gift giving the recipient the ability to know things supernaturally.
iii. The word of knowledge allows one to "see" things that you would not naturally know, whether in the past, present, or future.
iv. This gift provides us with "prophetic intelligence", information from the mouth of the Holy Spirit.
l. Distinguishing Between Spirits
i. Greek 'diakrisis pneuma' meaning 'distinguishing or judging of spirits'
ii. This gift allows the recipient to figure out if a person is working with the Holy Spirit, or another spirit.
iii. Those with this gift know can confirm a true prophet or recognize a false one before the proof comes.
iv. Those with this gift can tell whether a person's actions are genuinely inspired by God.
v. This gift does not allow one to see the heart of a person. Some people can do that by intuition. But, this gift is one of detecting what spirits are operating in a situation and act on that knowledge.
m. Faith
i. Greek 'pistis' meaning 'reliance on Christ'
ii. This is not just the faith one needs to be saved, but an "oversized" faith that allows a person to see beyond the circumstances into God's provision.
iii. This kind of faith is a Gift births big visions and the ability to rely on God for them to be accomplished.
iv. It is larger than the faith of Abraham, enabling you to see the promises of God come true just because He IS.
v. This faith encourages those in the Church and provides strength for the times when things seem to be "delayed".
vi. It is what is needed to see that "things that are not" become the "things that are".
n. Are there other gifts?
i. We should never limit the gifts of the Spirit, thinking that only those gifts listed in scripture are the only gifts
ii. Anything that is powered by the Spirit of God is a gift. Anything you do solely by His empowerment is His gift to the Church through you.
iii. The difference between a talent and a gift is in the results. A talent is a natural ability that enables you to do something exceptionally well. A gift from the Holy Spirit is a supernatural ability to work within the Church to help accomplish His purpose for it.
III. Tips for using the Gifts of the Spirit
a. Remember that anything from the Holy Spirit is extremely powerful - God is giving you a jet plane; learn to fly before you try to take passengers.
b. God still expects you to be courteous. Don't be rude! Be cautious and considerate when using your gifts.
c. Look for confirmation that you actually have the gifts you think you have. We don't always have an accurate view of our abilities and gifts.
d. Find someone who has similar gifts and ask for help.
e. Don't think that you are more spiritual because of your gifts - gifts are never deserved, that's what makes them gifts.
f. At some point, you will need to take a step of faith to use your gifts. When you do, be sure to take your time and follow the leading of the Holy Spirit.
g. Thank God every day for your gifts. Ask for more opportunities to use them. When you get those opportunities, don't hesitate.